Monday, March 20, 2006

Miscellaneous Thoughts

Okay, so I’m kind of in love with this dress, but can’t decide which version to get – the green or the black and white.

I also saw these AMAZING shoes in an ad this weekend in the March issue of “In Style” magazine and I MUST HAVE THEM NOW! It doesn’t show very well in the picture on this site, but the flower on the wedge heel is beaded. I just have to decide what color to get. Should I be “safe” and go with the brown which will go with everything, or should I be a little more daring and go for the blue or the orange which will probably not go with very much in my wardrobe or last for more than a season but are both really, really, really super-cute?

Decisions, decisions.

In other news, I had a rude bookstore encounter again. People, what is UP with this? The bookstore is supposed to be my safe haven and yet it’s suddenly been invaded by dimwitted aliens with no manners. At least there was no butt-in-the-air this time. This encounter was a group of snotty teenage girls…and I mean snotty like the girls at the “popular” table at lunch in high school who glared at anyone who entered the proscribed “zone” around their table who wasn’t part of their group. They’d decided to sit on the floor with their backs up against the books thus totally blocking any hope of any actual paying book customers (i.e. ME) from finding any books that might possibly be in that section. Again, this happened in the sci-fi section which I don’t understand – I would’ve thought teen romances or the magazine section to be the more appropriate venue for this group, but whatever.

So, I walk up to try to peer around them at the books thinking they’ll get the hint and move, but NOOOOOOOO! They continue on with the world’s most inane conversation about people named “Chad” and “Sophia” and I gather that Chad is gay and Sophia’s a bitch but Chad is really cute so it’s okay to overlook that he’s gay and maybe he’s not REALLY that gay and would still date girls out of curiosity but not Sophia because, as previously mentioned, she’s a bitch. And hey, when did Valley Girl speak come back in vogue? I told you people not to let gaucho pants come back. Now we’ve got to endure EVERYTHING 80’s that will come back with them – including Val Speak. Like, totally gag me with a spoon.

Wait, I lost my train of thought. Exposure to inane conversation for too long is kind of like radiation and makes my brain leak out my ears. Where was I? Oh yeah, Chad and Sophia – the wonder couple. So now, I’m trying to protect myself from the gene-mutating effects of being too close to this group for too long and at the same time trying to peek around the girls on the floor while resisting the rapidly-becoming-overwhelming urge to just kick them out of the way. Then I think about going for the manager but that worked so well in the LAST rude bookstore encounter that I decide to just clear my throat and politely say “excuse me, would you mind shifting over a bit so I can look at that shelf.”

The entire group busts up laughing but does move. And by move I mean they shift an infinitesimal amount across the floor – just enough to allow me to SEE the shelves but still have to almost trip over them to actually get to the books. I’m not sure what was so funny as to make them laugh that hard, but by then I’m having a serious geeky high school flashback of the hive-inducing variety so I just lean over to get my book and plan to slink quietly away when the entire group gets up (nearly knocking me aside in the process) and saunters over towards the magazine section (I TOLD you that’s where they belonged), but as they walk away, one of them turns around and mutters “bite me, bitch!” under her breath at me.

Now, is it just me or WTF???

But, I console myself with the fact that one day, they too will be 40 years old and will run into a group of teenagers who will totally, totally diss them in public and wherever I am, I’ll know about it and laugh myself silly.

Speaking of aging, here’s a little tidbit I found interesting. I was at the nail salon this weekend getting a pedicure and reading “Us” weekly. It’s one of the few vices I indulge in – reading trashy magazines at the nail salon. In the mag is an article on Teri Hatcher. Part of the article consists of a couple of close-ups of Teri’s face – one recent and one from a year or two ago and comments from a plastic surgeon about whether or not her claims that she’s “given up” botox, collagen, etc. are true. Now, she has wrinkles and crow’s feet in both pictures. They might be slightly more pronounced in the more recent picture but they are definitely there in both. The surgeon says that she may’ve given up botox and collagen, but she’s probably replaced them with something else because “no one looks THAT good at her age without help.” The article says Hatcher is 41.

Now, here’s what I found interesting. I’m going to be 41 in June – that’s 3 short months away so I think I can consider Hatcher and myself to be “of an age.” I’ve never had botox or collagen or surgery or anything else done to my face. I just keep out of the sun as much as possible (okay, the 80’s don’t count) and wash my makeup off at night. I’m still using the same soap and astringent I did when I was in high school. I have added a VERY light moisturizer that I just put on my cheekbones because that’s the only dry area I have. I HAVE NO WRINKLES WHATSOEVER AND CERTAINLY NO CROW’S FEET. And no, I’m not making that up.

So, either this plastic surgeon doesn’t know what the eff he’s talking about (which is REALLY scary) or there’s no way Hatcher is 41.

But either way – my face is amazing. All hail me!

And yeah, I know, consider the source. “Us” isn’t exactly the height of factual journalism but I still thought it was an interesting bit o’ news.

Let’s see, what else? Oh yeah. Didn’t get the book review posted on Friday because my son was sick so I stayed home and didn’t get on the computer. It’s written, though. Will probably post it tomorrow.

AND, I finished the flame bracelet! {insert image of KJ turning cartwheels…as if she could really do them} And yes, I (ever the insane one) started right into the next bead embroidered bracelet project although hopefully, this one will take advantage of what I learned in the first project and not be such a nightmare. Fingers crossed.

Oh, I finished two necklaces for my custom order (remember the whole “pink” thing?) They’re pretty darned awesome if I do say so myself (and I do). I didn’t have the appropriate clasps for them, though so I can’t scan them until I hit the beadstore and pick up the right finishing touches. So, I guess technically, they’re not actually finished, but ‘tis the work of but a moment to zap a clasp on (yes, that’s the technical term – “zap a clasp”) so I consider them finished. Now I have to make some mauve necklaces to go with the customer’s other two sweaters. I sure hope she likes some of these!